European Corn Borer
European corn borer (ECB) is an introduced pest that has spread across much of eastern and central North America. In vegetable crops, ECB is a pest of both sweet corn and peppers.
The number of generations of ECB ranges from 1 per year in the extreme north to 4 per year in the southeastern U.S. Most of the range within the U.S. has two generations of ECB per year; sometime these co-exist with a strain that has one generation per year. In New England, there are two strains of ECB: the Iowa (E) and New York (Z) strain, which are present in different ratios in different regions.
In northern areas, larvae overwinter in stalks of corn and other host plants, and pupate in the spring. In New England adult moths emerge from mid May to early June and mate in weedy or grassy areas. Fields that have been in field corn, sweet corn, or peppers for a long time will have higher pressure from ECB than other fields.
For Current information on production methods (including varieties, spacing, seeding, and fertility), weed, disease, and insect management, please visit the New England Vegetable Management Guide website.
Identifying and Enhancing Natural Enemies in Vegetable Crops
Insects
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